World of Warcraft Movie Details Emerge

If you have ever wondered what Sam Raimi does in his free time when he is not busy directing blockbuster movies like the Spider-Man trilogy, or cult favorites like Drag Me to Hell, apparently he is busy playing World of Warcraft. Soon the director will get his chance to show us his view of the world of Azeroth, when his adaptation of the World of Warcraft hits the big screen. The movie will be titled Warcraft, and it could be out in 2013.

In an interview with Collider, Raimi confesses that he is not just a fan of the game, but a huge participant as well. He currently has a level-72 character, and he sadly recalls the death of his level-28 shaman that someone accidentally deleted. The moment he recalls the deletion, he looks as if he is in actual pain, more-or-less confirming that he really is a fan.

The movie will be set in the – well, world – of World of Warcraft. It will not feature any references to the game or the real world, and Raimi appears to be treating the property as an epic fantasy, possibly in the Lord of the Rings vein.

The script is still a long way off, and right now only a 40-page treatment exists, but Oscar-nominated screenwriter Robert Rodat (Saving Private Ryan) has been hired to adapt the game. Legendary Studios is set to produce, and Warner Bros. is on board as the distributor.

Raimi praised the environments and the landscape of the game, plus the huge variety of characters and monsters, but it is still too early to discuss story. Several sources claim that Warcraft is due out in 2013, but that seems to be an estimate, rather than an official projection.

World of Warcraft currently has 11.5 million monthly subscribers, making it the biggest MMO in the world.